You are here: Home / Archives for Ideas in Real Estate

Santa Fe Foreclosures surge – Santa Fe New Mexican

July 30, 2010 By
Santa Fe Public Library
Image via Wikipedia

Good story in the Santa Fe New Mexican about the continued growth in real estate foreclosures.  I was quoted in this article and in a radio story on KSFR, my opinion being it’s not over yet, and we have more foreclosures to come in Santa Fe County before we start seeing daylight.

Frank O’Mahony, who opened up his Evolve Real Estate Santa Fe last year — the worst in at least a decade for home sales here — has done an analysis of the market on his website. He sees inventory rising whenever sales percolate.

“There is a huge overhang of people holding back, waiting to put their homes on the market,” he said.

Related articles by Zemanta
Filed Under: Ideas in Real Estate, Santa Fe property outlook Tagged With: , , , ,

Compounds – not just for the Godfather any more!

July 30, 2010 By

Here in Santa Fe I’ve noticed more clients asking – and more agents marketing – for Santa Fe properties that could be described as Compounds.  I guess it’s the cocoon effect - the desire to retreat to a safe, comfortable place surrounded by familiar things and faces.  These clients are asking about homes that are “flexible” or “configurable” – reminds me of when people started asking for home-office space.  But in this case it’s extra bedrooms/bathrooms, preferably with a separate entrance.  In some cases it’s to allow the owner to generate some rental income, but more and more it’s to accomodate another family member – one they want close, but not that close!

I have a wonderful Santa Fe home for sale in the Museum Hill district, which is about 10 minutes from downtown.  The home has a guesthouse, a studio and a main house – all three could be separate or integrated, and that’s what people seem to like about the place.   I had one son & mother very interested in the property and their plan was for the son to live in the guesthouse, the mother in the main house and the studio for guests and a meditation space.

Another Santa Fe home for sale is in the exclusive East Side and it’s really a compound too, with a main house, guesthouse, chapel (!) and a number of outbuildings.

Room for Grandma, space for the kids or grandkids (both of these properties are in great santa fe school districts), space to stretch, indulge in hobbies, arts & crafts….
Is the Compound the next thing?

Related articles by Zemanta
Filed Under: Ideas in Real Estate Tagged With: , ,

The Roller-Coaster Ride called a Short Sale

July 24, 2010 By

The New York Times has a great story today about understanding and navigating short sales. The story’s New York-centric of course, but the lessons and ideas are – sadly – universal.  Here in Santa Fe we have a smaller number of short sales, but they are at every price range, and in every location from Airport Road to Las Campanas.

Short sales are a gentler alternative to foreclosure for both sellers and lenders. “Compared to a foreclosure, a short sale generally allows an easier transition for the borrower, less impact on their credit history, and larger net proceeds to the loan’s owner,” said Tom Kelly, a spokesman for JPMorgan Chase, adding that Chase encourages borrowers who are unable to keep their homes to consider short sales.

Related articles by Zemanta
Filed Under: Ideas in Real Estate Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Why don’t Realtors use professional photographers?

July 21, 2010 By
Sistine Chapel ceiling, Michelangelo, The Liby...

Image via Wikipedia

I was given a great home to sell a few weeks ago – here are the details, thanks for asking – and the first thing I did was to hire a professional photographer, Chris Corrie.  Why? Because I am a good realtor but an average photographer.  Chris surprised me by telling me he rarely gets hired by real estate people any more.  Brokers tell him they ‘don’t need him’ because they have perfectly good cameras of their own.  Hmmm….  That’s like saying to Michelangelo ‘we don’t need you on the Sistine Chapel gig because we have our own paint and brushes’.   And of course, it shows.  The MLS is full of badly lit, poorly focused pics taken by enthusiastic but also very amateur real estate people.  Doors open, toilet seats up, dinner plates in evidence – you’ve seen the pictures. Why it frustrates me, apart from the issue of not giving the client the best possible marketing, is that we real estate professionals pitch ourselves as just that, professionals, and we rail against FSBO’s who ‘try to do it themselves’.  They don’t have the skills, don’t understand what goes into a transaction, blah blah.  Yet we’ll whip out our camera phone to save a couple of hundred dollars and deliver a sub-optimal job for our clients.  Bizarre.

Enhanced by Zemanta
Filed Under: Ideas in Real Estate Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

WSJ: Uncle Sam's New Guide to Mortgage

January 11, 2010 By

New Year, new regulations – and some clarity for home buyers navigating the mortgage maze.  The Wall St Journal has provided a good explanation.

Filed Under: Ideas in Real Estate
« Older Posts